Alexandra Warlow – MA Arts and Lifestyle Journalism

Alexandra Warlow shares her experience of MA Arts and Lifestyle Journalism at London College of Communication.

Where are you working at the moment? In what role?

I am a news reporter for the Guernsey Press and I also write restaurant reviews and gig reviews on a freelance basis for the same paper.

What are some recent interesting projects you’ve worked on?

On my second day at the paper, I was able to interview the incredibly successful producer Mura Masa. Granted this was because he is a native to the island of Guernsey, but it still proved the unexpected variety in the local paper. With my experience at UAL and in my spare time as a music fan, I'm often given the more cultural news and events to report on and review. I was able to go to La Route Du Rock festival last month and see some outstanding acts. A man came up to me on the street and told me he made his 16-year-old daughter read my review twice because he liked it so much – that has been my proudest moment so far.

A usual day could see me meet an 100-year-old woman in the morning and interview an archaeologist in the afternoon. I produce around five stories a day and had my first front page about three months into the job. Guernsey is the island I grew up on, so it was a tactical decision to take a job where I knew the community well and felt at ease. I feel that I'm honing the skills I learnt on the MA and building on the basics that you can only learn in the workplace.

What are your future plans and ambitions?

I'd like to blog and write more creative pieces in my spare time. My career ambition is either to write for a national paper or freelance in the U.K. I'd like to write travel, TV and food pieces that move people and make them laugh.

What did you study at LCC and what year did you graduate?

Why did you choose to study this course and why LCC?

The fact that LCC that is part of such a fantastic group of colleges is a big draw.

What is the most important thing you learned while studying on your course?

That there are many different uses for the same material: everything has already been written about once before, so you just have to make it interesting again. That it's all a lot harder than it looks.

How has the course helped you be where you are today?

It made me sure journalism was the career I wanted to get into.

What piece of advice would you give to new students?

Don't beat yourself up too much, it might be harder than it looks, but so are you.

What are your fondest memories of LCC?

I made friends for life on the course. It was also the only educational environment I've ever been in where I felt like I could knock on the door of my tutors at any time and they'd be willing to entertain one of my u-turn moments.

One happy memory was taking a road trip around the North of England to record a podcast with my classmate. Another moment that stands out is walking out of the LCC building on a late night after studying and feeling uninspired, when I saw John Cooper Clarke was doing a free gig in the auditorium. It picked me right up – only in London!